In short
A one-week cruise (7 nights) that starts and ends on a Saturday usually takes 5 days of leave: the weekends on both sides cost nothing from your allowance. A weekday public holiday in that week saves one more day. A short 3–4 night cruise around a long weekend often needs just 1–2 days.
Public holidays for 24 countries, 2026–2029
leave weekend holiday your day off
Tap a trip day to mark your own day off (a regional holiday, for example) or a working Saturday.
Public holidays are included for 2026–2029. For other dates only weekends are counted.
How many days in a row you can be away with this much leave — and when it works best in the next 12 months.
Best windows
How the calculator works
- Boarding day and disembarkation day are trip days. If they fall on your working days, you need leave for them.
- If you travel to the port the day before, or get home the day after you leave the ship, mark it — those days are counted too.
- Only national public holidays are included. Mark regional holidays, company days off or working Saturdays yourself by tapping the day in the calendar.
- You can change your working days — for example if you work Saturdays or a four-day week.
Five ways to use fewer days of leave
- Start and end on a weekend. Boarding on a Saturday and getting off on a Saturday turns 8 days away into 5 days of leave.
- Put the cruise in a week with a public holiday. In the Netherlands that means Ascension Day (always a Thursday — many people take the Friday too), Easter, Whitsun, King’s Day and Christmas.
- Take a short cruise over a long weekend. Three or four nights around a holiday costs 1–2 days of leave and is often plenty for a first cruise.
- Pick a port you can reach on boarding day. From the Netherlands that means Rotterdam or Amsterdam, or Hamburg and Kiel by train — no extra day just for travelling.
- Check the disembarkation time. Ships usually arrive early in the morning, so you can often be home the same day and keep the next day as a normal working day.
Frequently asked questions
Does boarding day count as a day of leave?
Yes, if it is a working day for you. Boarding usually runs from midday into the evening and you still have to get to the port, so a proper working day is rarely possible.
And disembarkation day?
Also yes, if it is a working day. Ships usually arrive in the morning and you are off by lunchtime, but the day goes on travelling. It is easiest when you get off on a weekend.
Does it include regional holidays?
No, only national ones. Mark a regional holiday or a day your employer gives you by tapping that day in the calendar.
Can I save the result?
Yes. Tap “Copy a link to this result” — the link keeps the country, dates and travel days, so you can send it to whoever you are travelling with or open it later.
Read next
The calculator gives an estimate. How much leave you have and which days count as working days depend on your contract and your employer’s rules. Holidays come from public calendars of national holidays, without regional ones.